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About us

Principal Investigator

Lauren Causey earned a Ph.D. in Education, Curriculum & Instruction from the University of Minnesota—Twin Cities. She has taught courses and published research about the importance of culturally diverse literature for K-12 settings. Dr. Causey has brought her knowledge and unique skill set to her current role as a program evaluator and educational researcher at the Science Museum of Minnesota. She is a reviewer for the Horn Book Guide, and began her career at the global headquarters of Scholastic Inc. She holds an Ed.M. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, with a focus in Language and Literacy, and a B.A. from Howard University. She is a native of New Orleans, Louisiana.

Project Assistant

Kathleen Patton, M.Ed., is a recent graduate of the Initial Licensure Program (Elementary Education) at the College of Education & Human Development at the University of Minnesota—Twin Cities.

Teacher Consultants

Lauretta Dawolo Towns is a 7th grade English Language Arts teacher for St. Paul Public Schools. She has served youth in other capacities including youth ministry, tutoring, afterschool programming, mentoring, and parent advocacy.

Felicia Orozco is an ELL teacher in Minneapolis Public Schools. She is a 2014-2015 Fellow in the Minneapolis Teachers Institute.